Abraham weil



(No Model.)

A. WEIL.

SWIMMING AND DIVINGr SUIT.

No. 476,341. Patented June 7, 1892.

NITED 'STATES ATENT trice.

ABRAHAM WEIL, OF BRUNSVICK, GERMANY.

SWIMMING OR DIVING SUIT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 476,341, dated J' une 7, 1892.

Application filed December 7, 1891. Serial No. 414,328. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, ABRAHAM WEIL, a subject of the Emperor of Germany, and residing at Brunswick, in the German Empire, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Swimming or Diving Suits, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The inconvenience attending the use of swimming or diving suits (jackets, vests, dac.) consisting of double sheets of material between which air is introduced to swell themsuch as have hitherto been used by divers and dock-laborers-is that the air con fined between the two layers of material is allowed to circulate throughout the whole swimming suit, so that when the wearer stoops or bends over to the front practically the whole of the air accumulates at the back and similarly by leaning back the airis made to collect at the front. The center of buoyancy of the swimming-suit is thus continually displaced, and hence the movements of the wearer in the water lack freedom and reliability, so that the diver or laborer wearing the suit may only with difficulty carry out his work, such as the repairing of ship-bottoms and the like. This drawback is obviated by the present invention, which consists in dividing the hollow space included between the two layers or sheets of material of which the swimming-jacket is made into a number of sections or air-compartments arranged in succession either longitudinally or preferably crosswise, communication between them being cut off or controlled by air-tight valves, so that each compartment may independently of the others be filled with air. A swimming-jacket made on this system is represented, by way of example,in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a general view of the jacket in elevation. Figs. 2 and 3 are respectively a longitudinal and a cross-section Aof one of the valves connecting the air-compartments, and Fig. fi illustrates a special method of attachment enabling the jacket or the like to be so buttoned as to admit little or no water through the joint. Fig. 5 is a modification.

The material preferably to be employed in the manufacture of swimming-apparel of this description is air and damp proof silk, such as is used for balloons or the like. The pieces of material are stitched or connected together by strips l), attached along the joints or seams by a suitable adhesive substance, and the connection is made in such a manner that all around the body in the transverse direction there forms a series of successive air compartments or chambers d a2, connected with each other by valves V. On the inner front side of the jacket is provided a flexible tube R, communicating with the air-chambers and fitted with a valve V, adapted to open when air is to be fed into or discharged from the jacket, but remaining closed while thejacket is in use. The valves V are each secured in the material in such a manner that its projecting rim or flange d is tightly held between the two sheets of material at the junctions, so that the perforation o alone permits any air to pass from one compartment to the next. B y means of a screw-plug S, the lower end of which is formed into a conical valve, the said perforation may be wholly or partly closed or opened for such conveyance of air.

In the form of swimming-jacket represented in Fig. l two valves V only are shown as being arranged on the front side, so that the connection between the compartments or chambers a4 a5 may be cut off or restored, as required, whereas the chambers d', a2, and a3 are permanently connected by small openings (not shown) provided in the junctions b. There may, however, be more than two such valves, enabling the chambers to be cut off from the adjacent ones and, if desired, each or any of the chambers to be filled with air or discharged quite independently from each other. Supposing, for example, that it is desired to force air into the chambers a', a2, and a3, while the chambers a and a5 are to remain empty, all that is necessary (in the present instance) is to close the respective valve V of a4, so that when air is admitted through the valve V it can only enter the three compartments a', a2, and d3, and consequently the buoyancy will be mainly centered in the upper part ofthe body-z'. e., nearthe shouldersof the wearer. Again, if it be desired to lill the chambers a4 and a5 with air and have none in a', a2, and a3 both the valves V are opened and all compartments are first supplied with air through V. Then the valves V are closed, while the valve V is left open until all the air ICO that the compartments should be inflated as tightly as possible, it will in all cases be found that the air is very uniformly distributed around the body and not liable to pass from one side to the other as the wearer moves about in the water. This constitutes the essential advantage of the arrangement hereinL described, for in the divers suits hitherto known, owing to the permanent connection between the air-spaces, the body of the diver in the water could not be poised, except by varying Athe supply of air, so that the divers suit was at one timemore iniiated than at another1 and the buoyancy accordingly increased or diminished, as the case might be, whereas,

according to this invention the position of the center of buoyancy or ballast is changed at will by varying, not the degree of the in` flation, but the number of air-chambers intiated all to the same extent-t'. e., to perfectv tightness-whence the before mentioned equal distribution of the air round the body so that the wearer, retaining his equilibrium, vas he does, under all circumstances, is capable of performing-even minute or delicate pieces of work in the water.

or discharging it from compartments of his suit situated on a higher or lower level, re-v move the center of buoyancyeither to a higher, j

to a more central, or to a lower part of his body, while in the divers suits hitherto em? ployed the buoyancy was always centered inthe upper part, so that the wearer could but with difficulty assume a horizontal position.

The fastening of this swimming or diving jacket across the chest maybe effected in any suitable manner by means of buttons.

ever, suggested to adopt the arrangement illustrated in Fig. t, which consists in placing strips of india-rubber e e along the edges, one of which strips e is made to surround a cord g of india-rubber or the like, while the. other e overlaps or envelops the first strip with the cord it contains,a buttonf, inserted into the narrow extensible opening 7L, fasten,

ing together both the strips e and e.

is made being preferably light, the jacket, for example, may be combined with an ordinary cloth jacket or coat, the diving-jacket being interposed between the cloth and lining. This is illustrated in Fig. 5 of the accompanying drawings. At the back of an ordinary (though preferably water-proof) coat is cut a longitudinal slit f', adapted to be fastened up by buttons or hooks and eyes. slit the swimming or diving Vjacket proper is inserted between the stuff and lining when required.

Besides, according as f the wearer wants to occupy a horizontal or1 vertical position,he may, by admitting air into As av better means of keeping out water it is, how` Through this The bands of india-rubber or water-proof cloth attached to the front edge of the divingjacket, the better to keep out the water, are each, when required, passed through one of the slits f2 f2, provided for the purpose in the front part of the cloth coat. At other timesi. e.. when not used in the water-they are left inside and turned back on the lining so as not to be in the way or betray the presence of the swimming or diving jacket underneath the cloth.

In order to render the connection between the swimming and ordinary coats as secure as possible, it is preferred to join both by means of hooks, although in many cases the simple provision of slits in the front .part of the swimming-j acket will prove sufficient. These slits, as shown in Fig. 5, may be cut close t0 .the buttons and buttonholes and will permit the ready insertion of the swimming-jacket into the cloth coat in case of needand its easy removal after use.

IVhen it is not desired that theswimming or diving jacket should be detachable from the ordinary jacket, as in the case of permanently-employed dock-laborers or divers, the two articles may be lixed together by a dampproof adhesive substance, (india rubber, caseine, or the like.)

.The tube R, with the valve V, being the means of filling the swimming-suit with air, projects from the inner upper portion of the jacket and may conveniently'be put out of the way into the breast-pocket.

The valves V', controlling the passage of air from one chamber to the other, are preferably situated on the inside of the jacket. They may, however, especially in the case of divers suits adapted for permanent use, be arranged externally, so that air may belet in or discharged, as required, even while the wearer is in the water.

The water-proof strips e e may, when the coat is to be employed for swimming or diving, be passed through the front slits f2 and fastened together outside by means of buttons. After use these strips maybe put back through the same slits f2 behind the lining, so as not to be in the way.

W'ater is prevented from entering through the lower part of the swimming-jacket by means of a cord fastened to the cloth coat and adapted by pulling to draw the jacket tightly around the body. `Around the breeches, en- The water-proof material of which the suit circled by the said cord, a band or belt of india-rubber from two to three centimeters wide may be fixed by means of a vsuitable adhesive substance, and the part containing the cord may be fastened to the belt by buttons.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said invention and in what manner the same is to beperformed, I declare that what I claim is l. The herein-described Swimming or divin g suit, provided with a plurality of independent cells arranged vertically with relation to each other and separated by strips b, the up- IOO IIC

munication with eaeh other and the lower cells a4 a5 provided with valves whereby they may be brought into communication with cell a3 and with eaeh other, substantially as set forth. x 5

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two Witnesses.

ABRAHAM WEIL. Witnesses:

CARL MOSES, D. G. SPALDING. 

